The TAIEX closed up 11.97 points, or 0.16 percent, at 7,492.85, after moving between 7,389.39 and 7,544.88, on turnover of NT$101.03 billion (US$3.37 billion).

“Many investors are hoping a falling [New] Taiwan dollar will enhance the local high-tech sector’s global competitiveness at a time when demand in the world has been hampered by the debt crisis in Europe,” Mega Securities (兆豐證券) analyst Alex Huang (黃國偉) said.

However, turnover remained moderate, indicating many investors remained on the sidelines because they were wary of the European debt problems, Huang said.

ASE to buy back common shares

Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc (ASE, 日月光半導體), plans to buy back 30 million common shares, or 0.44 percent, of total outstanding shares to protect shareholders’ interests, the company said in a statement to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday.

The company plans to buy back shares at between NT$22 and NT$40 each from today to Nov. 20, it said.

Taipei land deals on plate

Shihlin Development Co (士林開發) sold land for NT$551 million and expects to book a gain of NT$200 million from the transaction, the company said in a statement to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday.

Taiwan Tea Corp (台灣農林) plans to buy commercial property in Taipei for NT$5.12 billion, the company said in a statement to the local stock exchange, while Delpha Construction Co (大華建設) bought land in the capital for NT$1.1 billion yesterday to develop property, according to a separate exchange filing.

Taiwan Polysilicon was established in 2007 with a paid-in capital of NT$6 billion. Its major shareholders include LCY Chemical, which owns a 63.78 percent stake, and 11.97 percent by Everlight Electronics Co (億光電子).

TC Bank president resigns

Ta Chong Bank Ltd (TC Bank, 大眾銀行) president Edmund Koh (許健洲) resigned for personal reasons and will be returning to Singapore, the Taipei-based lender said in a statement to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday. Koh will continue to lead the bank until early next year, the statement said.

MOF urges more towel action

The Ministry of Finance (MOF) said yesterday that anti-dumping measures against Chinese towel makers should continue after it finished an investigation into the case.

The ministry would request the Ministry of Economic Affairs to conduct a second round of investigations. The MOF will make a final decision by year-end based on all the investigation results.

The MOF’s tariff committee levied a 204.1 percent anti-dumping tax on China-made towels for five years, which ended in June, but the levy will continue before a final decision is made, it said.

NT dollar down on Italy woes

The New Taiwan dollar lost ground against the US currency yesterday, declining NT$0.108 to close at NT$29.888 on escalating concerns over the strength of the euro after Standard & Poor’s downgraded Italy’s credit rating, dealers said.